Cinnamon Grilled Bananas

I’m almost certain these have a name – I mean a “proper” name; something like “Bananas Foster” (and no, that’s not these) but looking around online I was unable to find any specific title for this dish, so I just called it by what it is. I should add as well for my American readers that when I say “grilled”, I really mean that in the English sense of the word, since I believe most of you call it the broiler, right? “Broiled bananas” really doesn’t sound good to me… I have an image in my mind of a poor little banana being burnt to a crisp and that wouldn’t really do at all!

No, these bananas are grilled (from above) and they rock! As with the oat-rolled cookies I posted some time ago this is one of those dishes that we used to eat a lot at home when I was little. It’s just perfect because if you’ve had a good, satisfying Sunday lunch but you’re just hankering after something a little bit sweet, and you don’t want to spend yet another hour or so in the kitchen then you can whip these up in less than ten minutes. We always called them “flambéed bananas” because they do have many of the elements that flambéed bananas might have, but they’re made in a more simple way, and actually without any flambéing, which is probably just as well since big flames aren’t always a good idea in domestic kitchens :D.

They’re an excellent way to use up old, bruised bananas – indeed, I actually recommend you to use the blackest bananas you can find (well, maybe not completely black, but you know what I mean) – since the more ripe the banana, the more delicious the end result. For this dish today I had only “fresh” bananas, at their peak of ripeness, but the results were still good.

It was often my father who would make these. He cooked Sunday lunch a lot as my mother often worked Saturday nights (she was a nurse) so while she was catching up with some sleep he was busy in the kitchen. I actually forgot to add the butter for these. In the past I’d always dot them with butter before grilling, but I actually didn’t miss the butter at all in the end, and it sure makes them healthier, although I have included it in the ingredients in case you want to try it.

Another wonderful addition is a dash of brandy over the top of the bananas and I can heartily recommend this. Serve with cream – either whipped or simply pouring – or even ice-cream and you’ve got yourself a great dessert!

Have a great day folks – see you back here soon :).

Cinnamon Grilled Bananas

Ingredients

Bananas (around 1 – 1.5 per person)

Soft brown sugar

Cinnamon

Lemon juice

Butter (optional)

Instructions

Start off by cutting off the tops and bottoms of the bananas, and then slice them in half while they’re still in their peels (this will help prevent them from breaking). Remove the skins and arrange the banana halves in a shallow roasting dish. Sprinkle the tops of the bananas liberally with soft brown sugar and cinnamon and then drizzle with lemon juice. You can optionally dot butter over the bananas as well.

Place under a hot grill/broiler for about 5 minutes (not too close to the heat source), until the sugar has melted and formed a rich, bubbling syrup around the bananas. Remove from the grill and carefully transfer onto serving plates, being sure to spoon the syrup over the bananas as well. Enjoy with pouring or whipped cream!

Hi BA – did you have a chance to enjoy some in the end? It’s a great summer meal – doesn’t take long to make and perfect for after a meal like a barbecue. I’ve been good thanks – I hope you’re enjoying summer 🙂

Hi Charlie – my wife makes them in the frying pan… I must admit I prefer them under the grill. Simpler, and cleaner. If you use some aluminium foil or something, fashioned into a little tray, then there’s no mess!

Now this would be a fun dessert to serve at the end of a gathering. Summertime always seems to lend it’s way to grilling out and why not even take the dessert out to the grill. Great idea! Hot cinnamon bananas On top of some vanilla icecream sounds like a beautiful simple dessert.

I wish I would have had time to catch up on blogs sooner than today. I just had a few blackened bananas. Bummer. This would have been delicious!!! I love bananas. They have been one of my favorite fruits since childhood. I can just imagine how good these are and I can’t wait to try them. The kids will love them too no doubt. Now I just have to make sure to make enough to share them. 😉

These look beautiful! Such a glorious caramel colour. I am not a fan of raw bananas but when they are cooked, I love them! What a simple and delicious pud these are. You have reminded me how much a like a cooked banana – I used to do them on the BBQ stuffed with chocolate but I have not done it for ages. Thanks for the reminder!

What a nice and easy summer dessert! And with a splash of alcohol too 😉 I would probably put some rum which goes so well with bananas… I use broiler all the time and I think it’s a wonderful replacement for a grill if we cannot have it. I often grill chicken breasts like this. They end up juicy and crunchy outside.

Mm, it’s a very versatile cooking method, and to be honest, it’s the only way I make toast. We’ve never had a toaster in my parents’ home. Toast is made under the grill, so one might say I’m definitely accustomed to it 😀

Charles, being an American, I can just picture eating these with ‘a side’ of pancakes- Oh Boy! I’ve lived in Paris at various times to study cuisine at Le Cordon Bleu and will return to there next year.

Can you believe it? I have brown spotted bananas right now. I thought of making banana bread with these but this recipe is much simpler! We all need more potassium in our body I think. Great pics and your story is charming.

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Welcome! My name is Charles and this is FiveEuroFood. My goal with this site is to offer you recipes which reflect that cooking tasty food from scratch is not only easy and fun, but cheap as well. Read More →

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